Primitive and Collectible Antique Samplers

Embroidered Needlework from the Hands of 19th Century Girls

Sep 10, 2009

There is something endearing about antique samplers, those small pieces of linen given to young girls to practice stitchery techniques. Today those samplers are art.

Women have always stitched embroideries and tapestries. These arts were learned at a very young age, as soon as the girl's fingers were nimble enough to work a needle. Young girls were taught the many different stitchery techniques by practicing on small squares of woven linen.

Some early samplers were quite primitive and may have shown the alphabet, animals, the home the embroiderer lived in, the names of her family and she may have added her name, the date of completion and her age. Antique samplers can be quite valuable and are highly collectible.

Tracing the Sampler's History

Part of the joy and fascination with collecting signed antique samplers is in researching the names and learning the histories of the girls and women who made them. It is one of the few antique collectibles that can be traced to an original owner, but it takes diligence.

On many samplers, the child may embroidered a place name as in her town, or perhaps her school or church. This is a good beginning, because most small town libraries have archives with local historical documents.

Many samplers have certain regional similarities which also make it a good beginning for research. For example, strawberry symbols often appear in early 19th century samplers made in Pennsylvania. Thistles may indicate Scottish origin. A crown might indicate English origin. Research and detective work may unearth the creator's story.

How to Collect Antique Samplers

Purchase only the best for investment purposes, but for a simple collection, love the piece, even it has holes or a small stain. Primitive pieces have charm in their histories, but have a much lower value.

When valuing a piece, damage, stains, mildew, the quality of the embroidery stitches, and the age of the sampler all play a role. A fine collection may include only quality samplers embroidered by young girls with their names, their age and the year each piece was embroidered. These samplers will usually show alphabets with borders made up of a variety of stitches. And the more symbols or pictures embroidered into the sampler, the higher the value generally.

Other collections may only include those that mark historical events. These generally have more value and the collector can expect to pay premium prices for them.

Early samplers, dating to and before the mid-19th century are rarer and therefore have more value to collectors. Most were stitched with fine wool or silk thread. White work may have been stitched with cotton threads. Expect to pay upwards to $1000 or beyond for a good quality sampler from this period.

American, British and European antique samplers have similar considerations to values and many samplers of great age or from the 16th century are of European origin. These are quite rare and valuable. English samplers of later dates were less primitive than American samplers, but usually the American samplers fetch slightly higher prices. Knowing the history of the piece will add significantly to the value.

Cleaning, Framing and Preserving Antique Samplers

Yellowing in old linen is a natural result of aging. There is really no need to clean it or have it brought back to its original brightness and doing so may actually lower the value.

Framing antique samplers is best done by a professional conservator. The goal is to stabilize the sampler with another piece of linen behind it or acid-free board and frame it in a deeper frame, so that the glass does not touch the embroidery work or the cloth. The textile department in a museum in the owner's area may be able to recommend a good conservator.

If the collector feels she can do this herself for a lesser sampler she should remove the sampler from it's frame and replace the glass with UV protected glass. Remove the dust particles from the embroidery with a dust remover that has very low suction. If the sampler is badly stained, it should be left alone or sent to a conservator.

Displaying Antique Samplers

Samplers should be enjoyed and on view, rather than hidden away in an acid-free box. A collection of framed antique samplers are best displayed together. Designers agree that collections of anything should be displayed together for the impact and eye appeal. If the frames are not original to the samplers, a good effect is to unify the frame material. When the frames are all different types of wood, tin or colors, it draws the eye away from the art. Unifying the frames puts focus only on the samplers.

To avoid fading, antique samplers should be placed on a wall out of direct sunlight.

References

The copyright of the article Primitive and Collectible Antique Samplers in Antiques & Collectibles is owned by Lorraine Syratt. Permission to republish Primitive and Collectible Antique Samplers in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.